NEWS COMMENT: So minister, will you visit Portsmouth port on your doorstep?

Contingency plans being drawn up by Portsmouth’s port are driven not by investment targets or a plan for growth – but uncertainty.

Not knowing the future make-up of Britain’s relationship with the European Union after Brexit means bosses – sitting on the now-revealed Brexit Working Group – are planning on a worst case scenario no-deal Brexit.

So at a time of such concern and facing the great unknown, it's not much for Fareham MP Suella Braverman to pay the port a visit. Some might ask: why should she?

Well, Mrs Braverman has the difficult job of marshalling in Brexit as a minister in the Department for Exiting the EU (Dexeu).

But it goes further than that, Mrs Braverman is a huge Eurosceptic – and there’s no criticism of her for having that view. But the Brexit project is something she believes in.

As a backbench MP the former barrister took on the chairmanship of the European Research Group, now led by one Jacob Rees-Mogg.

Campaigning for and now helping to oversee Britain’s exit, some of the responsibility for its successes or failures stops with Mrs Braverman.

And if she won’t visit her home port to listen to their concerns, how can the rest of us be assured she knows the realities they face?

Even in this time of uncertainty the port has won new contracts, its workforce is experienced and ready if a no-deal Brexit happens – they just need more infrastructure.

So isn’t it about time Mrs Braverman travels from her Fareham constituency office, along the M27 to the port to listen?

We suggest she may want to do it ahead of departure day on March 29, 2019 – just in case she gets stuck in traffic behind a few lorries on the way into Portsmouth on the M275.

Trending

A27 delays: ‘Severe’ traffic in both directions after lorry ‘loses its load’

A27: Two-hour delay after lorry sheds its load – UPDATE

Jailed mother Roxanne Davis ‘attacked in the street’ over death of baby Stanley

Police investigation as man, in his 60s, suffers ‘unexplained’ head injury in Gosport car park